


To New Beginnings

by blossom_angel85



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Exes, F/M, Family, Love Confessions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-10-09 06:10:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17401511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blossom_angel85/pseuds/blossom_angel85
Summary: Danny and Rachel have always been in love with each other, even when they have been with other people. Their daughter Grace is seriously injured in a car wreak and left for dead which only manages to draw the two recently single parents closer together. Will Danny finally man up and admit that he still loves her? Will Rachel ever admit that she recpricates those feelings?





	1. loaʻa nā kūlana (Taking Chances)

 

 

The week that Grace was in hospital, it had brought Danny and Rachel even closer, Both of them sitting for hours on end at the hospital with Grace, talking to her, being with her and being with each other, and spending time with Charlie, letting their very concerned son be there for his sister the way that Grace had been there for Charlie when he had been stuck in the hospital after his bone marrow transplant.

Stan had come all the way from Vegas to visit with Grace and to apologize in person to Danny about the car. He hadn’t been trying to play favorites, he had just felt guilty that he had chosen his home to be in Vegas and that he had missed out on so many things with his step children that he was over compensating by not being in their lives more often. Truth was, he had always been jealous of Danny having such a close bond with Grace and now even Charlie.

Danny had already apologized to Rachel in the hospital about how he had over reacted about the car and that he shouldn’t have gotten angry and said what he had said. He was still hurt over the betrayal he had felt at losing the first few years of Charlie’s life as his father but he was ready to let it all go and move on now. There had many many things which he had become painfully aware that life was short, but this had really opened his eyes to some things.

It felt more of a relief than anything when they were finally told they could take Grace home, and for reason he wouldn’t yet understand, Rachel had insisted they go back home to his place rather then her place. What was waiting for them back home had put a smile on his face, his family, his own little or rather now big Ohana, complete with Charlie up on Adam’s shoulders to the welcome home Grace banner. 

This was what it was all about. Celebrating life and being alive and around family and those that you love and care about. Once everyone was starting to settle down to eat their food, Danny noticed Rachel sitting out on the outdoor table with a wine glass in her hand, so he grabbed her a plate of food and a plastic knife and fork and brought it out to her, “You hungry?”, smiling softly at him, she nodded, ‘Ohh thankyou, yes I am starving”, was her answer, putting down the wine glass at the same time Danny set down the plate on the table. 

Knowing that she was still getting used to being around so many supportive and caring people, he decided to sit down across from her to keep her company, he watched as she ate the Osso Buco, hoping that it would draw a reaction from her. It was the meal he cooked for her during their first date, and he couldn’t help the way his heart sped up when she mentioned that she was having a moment of deja vu and that she thought he had made it for their first date. 

The look on her face when he had asked her “Why do you think it’s on the menu?”, It was a start. It was a genuine reaction to a prelude into how he was really feeling about her.  Melissa, his ex girlfriend had told him to “Tell her how you feel before it’s too late”, having no idea what she had meant at the time but now knowing exactly what she was talking about. He was still in love with his ex wife, the mother of his two incredible children and he didn’t think he would ever totally fall out of love with her. 

It was a conversation that he wanted to have with her, but not right now.. Not right here.. He wanted wait till everyone had left, and the the kids were tucked up in bed and asleep before he broached that topic with her. He wasn’t sure how she felt about him, but that little smile and confused “Ohh come on”, He was sure it meant something.. He wanted it to mean something. 

It wasn’t too long before they were reminiscing about that night, It might have been their first official date but having been giving her driving lessons for a few months and the occasional stopping off for coffee afterwards, he had realized in that moment when she had stood behind him at the sink, leaning her chin on his shoulder, her arms wrapping around his waist that he was falling for the beautiful English woman and there was nothing he could do about it. 

Watching her fall back just as easily into conversation with him now, he was realizing the same thing, that he was falling in love with her all over again and that there was nothing he could do about it except hope she might be falling for him too. “Danny?”, her hand resting on his in concern her brows furrowing when she was worried, noticing he had seemed to go somewhere else, “Are you okay?” Nodding his head as he came back to the present, he smiled softly, “I’m fine Rach.. I’m better then fine”. Squeezing her hand, he tried to reassure her everything was fine when truth be told, he was a bundle of nerves with these new revelations and totally unsure how to even act on them or if he even should. 

 


	2. ʻOiai ka mea hōʻoia  (Always the Analyst)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rachel's POV on her marriage to Danny, and her marriage to Stan and how she feels now about her first ex husband.

 

Love was a strange and complicated thing, Here she was sitting there with her ex husband talking and enjoying the same meal that he cooked for her when they had their first date. Part of Rachel had never stopped loving her first husband Danny Williams, and most probably would never stop either. What had pulled her away from Danny to start with was her fear of losing him due to the ever dangerous nature of his job. It was true she had loved the fact he was a cop, and she still did, She was always so proud of him, but it was hard being a cop’s wife, never sure of when and if your husband would be home, being interrupted in the middle of dinner or date night because he had to go to a crime scene. 

Deciding to walk away from their marriage was never an easy decision, It wasn’t because she had fallen out of love with him, it was because she was just too afraid to get that call one night or knock on the door to say he wouldn’t be coming home to her and Grace. Those fears had only grown since they had Grace, and especially since when she heard about what happened on 911, not just with the towers in New York, but realizing her husband and his partner were captured and tortured, his partner Grace having been killed during that attack. It was why she agreed to name their daughter after his partner because he knew it was the only way he felt he could honor her. 

Had she loved Stan? Yes, in her own way, she had loved him, though he was never her great love, and she loved him in a different way then she did Danny. Stan had represented more reassurance to her,  with him she felt less scared and afraid of losing him, but apart from the honeymoon period of their relationship which only lasted about a year after they were married, they fought a lot and it just seemed that the marriage wasn’t going to work out. Grace had only been six years of age when her and Danny divorced, seven by the time she remarried and then was eight when they moved to Hawaii and so she hadn’t wanted to unsettle Grace yet again by telling her that her and Stan were divorcing as well. 

Her feelings for Danny had always been there, but just left dormant in a way, there had been a few moments when those feelings came back up to the surface but she had pushed them back down. It had always been her fear of losing Danny which made her push him away, and why she had tried on a few occasions to change custody arrangements. She was scared that she would lose Grace as well if something happened to her while in his care, however, it was more that she was scared about how Grace would also handle losing Danny if anything happened to him. Grace had always been especially close to her father so losing him would be extremely difficult for her, so in a way she was trying to protect Grace as she had herself. 

Her marriage to Stan had been failing and when she got the call about Danny in hospital, her heart had nearly broken into pieces. She had been reassured he would be fine, but it made Rachel realize that even if they weren’t together, that she would still feel heart broken if she lost him. That was when their relationship changed and without even thinking about how wrong it was, she had begun an affair with her ex husband and had planned on leaving Stan. Finding out she was pregnant felt like a blessing in disguise. She had a difficult pregnancy with Grace and had been told she might find it hard to conceive again and had tried many times with Stan to fall pregnant in an attempt to save their marriage.

Her insecurities got the better of her though, and she realized that Stan would always be the safe option, especially with Danny always going off and playing hero even when he didn’t need to be. It especially upset her when she had been ready to move back to Jersey with him, but yet he who didn’t want to be here to start with seemed to now have made friends and partnerships and a need to help those people that he now called family. It pained her to lie to Danny, when she told him that the baby wasn’t his, she had been in tears after that phone call. Explaining to Grace why they were going back to Hawaii and to Stan wasn’t easy, and she questioned her decision every day and felt sick to her stomach all the time about lying. 

Stan was a good father to baby Charlie and step father to Grace, however he was an absent father, having essentially chosen his career over his family. It was another thing she had begun to resent about him. Danny had done everything to remain close to Grace, moving from his home in New Jersey to Hawaii and yet when Stan was asked to move from Hawaii to Las Vegas, he had decided that on his own, he had agreed without asking or consulting her or thinking about their children or even Danny. They had fought a lot over that decision and only tried to petition the custody arrangement to appease Stan because she knew she couldn’t do the move without Grace. Ultimately though she had been happy when Danny won the right to not let Grace move to Vegas because she felt home here too.

Once Stan moved to Vegas, Rachel split her time between Hawaii and Vegas, though most of her time she remained in Hawaii which ended up causing more problems with their marriage. It had been around the time Charlie got sick that they had decided a trial separation, though when they found out just how sick, they had once again attempted to reconcile. When it had been revealed to both Danny and Stan that Charlie was indeed Danny’s son and not Stan, It hard been hard to tell the both of them but she needed to for her son. After hearing Danny’s reaction,  She knew he would stand up and be there for his son, though she wasn’t sure she would ever get his forgiveness so instead she focused on Stan, telling her that he was there for her and Charlie even if he wasn’t his. 

It had taken an even bigger toll on their marriage, and since Rachel was more often then not in Hawaii with Grace and Charlie, Stan had decided it was the best decision to end the marriage. It had been a shock to her, and whilst she was saddened she couldn’t make a second marriage work, she was relieved in a way that it was over. It hadn’t been working in a long time and they had both checked out of their marriage a long time before it officially ended. Rachel remained on the Island as it had become her home and she was also respecting that this was Danny’s and the kids home and they had family and friends here now as well that she could never take them away from. It might not be a conventional family but she had to admit, they were all there for their kids and for Danny. 

Now here she was, celebrating with her ex husband and his adopted family the fact their daughter was alive and well on her way to recovery and it had made her really stop and think about everything. How she felt about Danny, How badly she had treated him over the years, How unfair she had been on him, and how despite her not wanting Grace to be around Danny because his job was dangerous and didn’t want her to be hurt, it was whilst Grace had meant to be staying under her roof that this had happened, and she realized that Danny had been right, that it was because of his job, she stayed safe and justice had been served. This proved it, If she hadn’t had a cop for a father, They might not have found the guy who had been harassing Grace and her friend. 

How to apologize? How did she even begin to make amends? Could this be a fresh start for them? Did he even still feel the same about her that she did for him? They had grown closer over the week that Grace had been in hospital, but still she was unsure what it meant. His girlfriend Melissa was no longer in the picture, Grace had mentioned that at some point when Danny was taking Charlie to the bathroom. It was something she had thought about a lot, and now washing the dishes as Danny said goodbye to their last guest of the evening, the kids both tucked up in bed already, he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, leaning his chin on her shoulder, and pressed a kiss to her cheek, “You look exhausted Rach, why don’t you go grab another bottle of wine, and go pick a movie for us to watch. I’ll finish up here”. 

Nodding her head, she smiled softly, remembering how on their first date, it was her standing behind him and now he was doing the same. Maybe things would be fine between them. He wasn’t kicking her out now that there was no one else around, he seemed to want her to be here, and that was just fine with her. Turning her head lightly, she kissed his cheek back and waited till he took a step back to let her move, she walked over to the fridge and got another bottle of wine out and took their glasses into the living room and set them down on the coffee table, then moving to go pick a movie, smiling as she picked out their favorite movie, the movie that they watched on their second date, Mickey Blue Eyes, unaware that Danny had been watching her with a smile of his own. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your encouragement and excitement with this story. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I decided to do this chapter from Rachel’s POV because before we got any further, I wanted to try to explain why she might have behaved in certain story lines. Whatever the reasons are, and if they are anywhere near close to how she actually felt, I know a lot of people might say it isn’t justified but in her mind, it might have felt justified to her. I also wanted to show that she feels bad about it as well. I am glad to know there are Ranno or Dachel however you want to call them shippers out there that want to see their happy ending. 


	3. ʻO ke kumu maoli  (The true reason)

There was something that had been bothering Danny for as long as he had been divorced and that was still not knowing for sure what had been the final nail in the coffin that had ended his marriage. He had heard all of her excuses and the way she spoke about it, saying that it was due to the fact he had a job that was dangerous and that part of it was she couldn’t stand to lose him.. That didn’t sit right with him because she had lost him the day she finally packed up and left him, why be scared of losing someone because of a job situation when you leave that person anyway?

It didn’t make sense, there had to be something more to it, he just didn’t know what it was.. That thought had pestered him all these years, was he not good enough? Did he not have enough of a positive outlook on life for her? The day he confessed to Steve that even on the day of his wedding to Rachel when he was about to say I do, he had still be thinking of the day she would serve him with divorce papers.. Perhaps he looked at life so grimly all this time that he didn’t see what had bee right in front of him all that time, that he didn’t take the time to enjoy his time with Rachel, instead he stressed out about the day she would leave.

Ever since Grace’s accident, he had been spending more and more time with Rachel, the four of them as a family, but also just the two of them as well. He had offered to let Rachel stay at his place the night so she didn’t have to go home alone to an empty house, and he did wonder more about what had happened with their marriage, how it all ended the way it had.. He needed answers and he really hoped that Rachel was willing to provide some after all this time. Was it because he was so insistent on not going to therapy? Could their marriage have been saved if he had? All these questions and he felt so terrible now for not even trying.

Sighing softly, he finished the dishes, putting them away and tidied up the kitchen. After all his failed relationships, Rachel, Gabby and Melissa, he just did want to settle down and be happy, the kids were more then enough but it still wasn’t the same as having a warm body to keep him company of a night, just someone he could share his life and dreams with. It hadn’t worked with Gabby because neither had been committed enough to the other to not let other things stand in the way and Melissa, well it didn’t work because he knew he could never commit to her either, not in the way she wanted and deserved.

Turning the kitchen light off, he unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it off, leaving just the white t-shirt he usually wore under his collared shirt on and then walked around to the couch where Rachel was waiting, fiddling with her phone while she waited for him to finish up what he had been doing. He was a little nervous if he was honest with himself, but this conversation was long overdue and it was something he needed to get out.While he was trying to figure out the best way to approach this conversation, Rachel shifted on the couch, poured them both a glass of wine, then handed him one of the glasses, looking over at him, “Come on Danny, just get it out already”.

Why he was shocked at those words, he would never understand, if there was one person besides Steve that understood him completely, it was Rachel. She knew him almost better then he knew himself, a fact that used to scare him a little, though now in situations like this, it actually comforted him. Not even going to pretend that he had no idea what she was talking about, he took a carefully slow sip of the wine, then set the glass down on the coffee table before turning his body to fully face her, coughing a little to clear his throat, his hands clasped together in front of him. He had a tenancy to express himself through his hands a lot so he decided to keep them together for now.

Looking down in front of him, his voice was low and soft and spoken in a genuine confused manner, not at all accusing, just questioning, “Why did you leave me Rachel?.. All these years and I still don’t have all the answers”, shifting so he was now looking at her, he could see her mouth begin to move and before she said anything more, he shook his head, “And please Rachel, don’t give me the excuse that you were scared to lose me.. If that is all it was, we could have made it work.. So please, tell me.. Where did I go wrong? What did I do to make you leave?” Danny’s heart was racing fast inside his chest, all of his nerves in his body on fire, not sure he wanted to know the answer, but at the same time knowing he needed to know and that he deserved to know.

These were the questions he needed answered because if it was something he did or didn’t do, then he could have fixed it, or at the very least he could learn from his mistakes and maybe able to move on after all this time. Sighing softly, he looked away for a moment before his head flew back to face her as she reached for his hand, squeezing gently before carefully letting her fingers trace around the palm of his hand, “It wasn’t anything you did or didn’t do Danny. I know you and my parents never really got along, they always believed I deserved better, my whole family was against you and I marrying.. I never listened to a word they said..”

She sighed softly, looking down herself for a moment, the tears slowly beginning to well in her eyes, “Until the day they told me that you wanting to name our daughter after your old partner was a pretty significant thing.. They told me that it must mean you loved her and had perhaps had an affair with her.. I never wanted to believe them Daniel, I never wanted to believe you would hurt me that way by having an affair and then rubbing it in my nose by naming our daughter after your lover but they wouldn’t let up.. They kept telling me all these theories that eventually had even me convinced it was true.. They supported it by saying it was why you never wanted to go to therapy with me.. They had me so convinced in fact that I started withdrawing and pulling away from you, distancing myself till I made the decision to walk away to stop myself from hurting anymore”.

Danny took a deep breath in, and exhaled slowly to try to control his own emotions, his heart breaking right then and there, tears falling down his own eyes.. Was he angry, of course he was, but he wasn’t angry with Rachel.. Her family had never thought he was good enough for her, he was just a cop after all, didn’t come from money, didn't use his college education to further himself, and had basically just a blue collar jobAll his adult life was spent in the Police Force, working his way up to where he was now but still that was not good enough for the Hollander family, he knew how much they disliked him and only tolerated him for Rachel and Grace’s sake, so this wasn’t too much of a shock or a surprise to him. It hurt to finally know the truth, that she had left him because of rumors and lies her family started, that their marriage was torn apart because of other people meddling in something that should have been between him and Rachel.

“I’m so sorry Danny, I shouldn’t have let them come between us.. I should have talked to you about what was going on.. Instead I just walked away and let our marriage and our love die”. The tears were rolling down her eyes freely now and he did something that he never expected to.. He took advice from Steve and instead of pushing her away like he normally would do in this kind of situation, he pulled her in and brought her closer to him, taking the glass from her hand and setting it down on the coffee table, letting her lean into him, her head resting on his shoulder and his arms wrapping around her, sighing softly, his own tears falling slowly down his eyes..

All of this because he wanted to honor his partner partner whom died the same day he found out that Rachel was pregnant.

Pulling her to an arms length, looking into her eyes and pulling the hair back behind her ears, his hands resting on either side of her face on her cheeks and he leaned in, kissing her softly on the lips, letting his lips linger there for a moment or two before pulling away just slightly, not even noticing that somehow she had managed settle herself in his lap as they cuddled. “Rachel, I know that I have aided in cheating.. with you while you were with Stan, but I can assure you now that it never crossed my mind to ever be intimate with anyone other then my wife.. Sure I’ll admit, I was close to my partner Grace, but wanting to name our daughter after her, it was all about honoring her memory.. I felt so guilty about leading her into that situation without any kind of back up, It was something I had to do.. It’s not got anything to do with me having an affair with her or having feelings for her”.

His heart and head were a big mess filled with so much confusion.. He got the answer he had been wanting all this time, but it really made him question so much.. If her family hadn’t gotten in her ear and convinced her of all of this, where would they be now? Would they had worked out their issues? Would they be in New Jersey still? Would they have Charlie? It was hard not to wonder about all of these things, but right now he was trying not to focus too much on all of that.. Though it did make so much sense now, the fights, arguments, the times Rachel had threatened to take Grace away from him, why it seemed she hated him so much.. It was all based on a bunch of lies based around him cheating on her.. He would have been pissed off too if he thought Rachel had cheated on him, then wanted to name their kid after the person you thought they were having the affair with.

Looking at him curiously, she wondered why he hadn’t blown up yet, usually by now he would be seething, showing red and steam would be practically coming out from his ears, “You’re not mad then?”, she needed to know how he felt, if he could forgive her for what had happened, and if he could let it go and move on without too many issues.. “Not mad.. Rach, I’m trying my hardest to stay in control of my emotions right now.. I don’t want to wake the kids up and stress Grace out right now, but I am madder then I have been about anything”, before she could say anything more, he held his hand up, “Let me clarify.. I’m not angry at you Rachel.. I''m mean.. I’m upset that you didn’t think to talk to me about it first, but my anger is with your folks and your family, not you”.

Breathing out a huge sigh of relief that she didn’t even know she was holding onto, she nodded her head, her hands coming together, clasping at her fingers, and her resting her fingers on the bridge of her nose and her mouth, “The only reason I didn’t say anything was because I was scared of knowing.. I didn’t want to hear you tell me you loved her Danny.. I should have told you, but I was just too scared of the what I already believed the truth to be”. Reaching out to her, he took one of her hands in hers and sighed.. “I know Rach.. I know”. Looking down at his phone and checking the time, he noticed it was a little after ten pm and he was beat.. He had a lot to think about and so did she from the look on her face..

Standing up and pulling her up with him seeing the surprised expression on her face.. “It’s late and we are both tired from being at the hospital none stop since Grace’s accident.. why don’t we forgo the movie tonight and just head to bed, we can watch it another night”. Nodding her head she stifled a yawn, her body betraying how tired she was and smiled softly, wiping he eyes with her free hand. Letting her lead him to his bedroom, she was once more surprised when he handed her an old oversize on her Newark t-shirt she loved wearing, and walked around to grab some comfortable clothes for him to sleep in before setting down into his side of the bed once he changed..

Putting his phone on charge, he had noticed Rachel had not moved at all, “You coming in”, he smiled softly as he patted the bed beside her which shook her out of her thoughts, “Are you sure you want me to stay in your bed with you? I can sleep on the couch?”.. As much as she wanted to sleep beside him once more, she didn’t want him to feel uncomfortable.. “It’s fine Rachel.. I think we both need this tonight, Am I angry.. Yes, Do I need to process all of this information, yes of course and that will take some time, but we nearly lost our daughter last week and I don’t think either one of us has had time to really deal with the aftermath of emotions because we have been busy taking care of our daughter and our son, so let’s make a pact here and now that we deal with what we talked in our own ways and then we move on the best we can”.

Rachel nodded, then quickly changed into the shirt, leaving her other clothes on a cane chair that he had in the corner and shuffled over to the other side of the bed, pulling the comforter and sheets down and slipped into the bed, Danny’s outstretched arm all the invitation she needed to snuggle right into him, both of them falling asleep quickly. She kept a lot of things from him over the years, a lot of things that he was angry over but this one merely made him angry at her family and sad about their marriage being ruined by lies. To him though, this was home.. He hadn’t felt this way in a long time and though he was angry and wanted to just confront his ex in laws right then and there, he hoped that this little bit of truth that she had hidden from from him all these years would finally be what they needed to move on and start over..

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all your continued support and love with this story. I am sorry it has taken me a couple of weeks to get a reply done for this one. I hope this makes up for the wait. I was thinking about a comment one of you made about being more then just the fear of losing someone and I agree so I was originally going to re-submit chapter two, but then thought why not just address it in chapter three.. 
> 
> I think this is a realistic reason as to why she may have left, even why she tried to get him into therapy as a way of proving to herself it wasn’t true then realizing it possibly was when he was reluctant to do therapy, then starting to distance herself from him more and more.
> 
> I also heard that Rachel’s mother will be making an appearance on the show in a few episodes time and that she doesn’t much like her ex son in law so I thought perhaps because she is a famous published author, she has always looked down on Danny because of where he grew up and the fact he has a blue collar job being a cop but she knew she she would never get Rachel to leave just based on financial reasons so she fabricated this story up to get Rachel to leave.


	4. Palekana  (Soundboard)

 

It had been a couple of days since Grace had come home from the hospital and there hadn’t been a lot of opportunities to re-vist what had been said the first night she had come home.. It was a lot of information for Danny to have to process and deal with, and before he could re-visit this with Rachel, he had to spend some time going over everything in his head.. He had already told her why he wanted Grace to be named after his partner, and that he would never have considered cheating on her, but he was still really hurt over it.. 

This wasn’t just about him though, it was about them.. What they had put Grace through all those years.. If she had believed in him and trusted in him, then they may never have ended up divorcing and he wouldn’t have had to see the love of his life marrying another man.. Though he was a big believer in fate, and the saying that things happen for a reason, had they not divorced, he may not have ended up here with such an amazing family who loved and cared for him and his kids like their own. 

It did cross his mind though about why Rachel had all of sudden decided to leave him again when they were looking at rekindling their relationship and was pregnant with his child, though he wasn’t quite sure if he ever truly believed that she was further along then she had let on, especially when she went into ‘labor’ early, but he never questioned it.. It was what it was and her leaving him again shouldn’t have hurt as much as it did, but he had been really happy that they were going to be a family again and bringing another child into the world. 

Was her mother the real reason behind her changing her mind and going back to Stan? His mother in law Amanda Savage never liked him, in fact she couldn’t stand the sight of him the majority of the time whereas she loved Stan.. Stan was exactly who she wanted as a son in law, so for Rachel to leave Stan and go back to her ex husband and to top it all off have to tell her mother not only was she leaving and going back to Danny, but that her and Danny were having another baby. 

The thought was causing him to lose focus even enough that he had needed to get out of the house for a few hours and go to work, Rachel had been staying with him since the night Grace came home, and with four people in the house, it felt like too many bodies added to the fact that Rachel had hinted at wanting to talk again about everything in more detail to try to resolve some of the tension between the two of them and Grace, Charlie and Rachel were watching high school musical it was causing Danny to lose his mind. 

“Alright, So what’s going on Danny?”, Steve turned his head a little, glancing over at his partner who looked like he was having a break down, his hands still on the steering wheel, eyes darting back on the road and back to his partner every so often, “What are you talking about, nothing’s going on Steven, just keep your eyes on the road”. Nodding his head knowingly, Steve smirked, looking back at Danny, “Keep my eyes on the road.. Partner I know you think you are the better driver here, but telling me to keep my eyes on the road is not going to distract me from the real issue”. 

Turning his head from the window to face Steve, he raised his eyebrows and shook his head, sometimes he thought Steve did this to him on purpose to stir him up, “The real issue.. What are you crazier then usual? Ohh And I suppose you are going to tell me what the ‘real issue’ is aren’t you Steven”. Danny always let Steve get under his skin, though there were the odd occasions when he didn’t really mind it and often unaware to Steve, played along because he liked seeing the look on the man’s face. 

“Well, yeah, I am going to tell you what the issue is..The issue has to do with Rachel doesn’t it? Correct me if I’m wrong though Daniel, but that look you got going on there.. It is the same look you always get when something is about Rachel”. Letting out a sigh, he shook his head and turned his head back towards his partners.. The man always seemed to know what his moods were about, they were like a married couple, they just had that sense of knowing exactly what is wrong and why.. “Alright.. If I tell you, will you quit pestering me about it huh?

The smirk on his face, the one that said he always knew how to break Danny, and he chuckled softly, “Of course, of course.. What’s happened this time?”, When it came to his ever complicated relationship with Rachel, Steve was the one whom he always managed to have these little chats and conversations with.. To be honest, though he always thought Steve bugged him on purpose and did things to annoy him, he was actually a good listener and had often helped him out with certain things as well. 

Running his hand through his hair, Danny took a breath and let it out slowly, glancing back over at Steve who had just driven in the car park back at the palace, “It’s nothing new.. Rachel always told me that she left because she was scared of losing me in this job, it’s why she has tried to take custody away on occasion when Grace was young because she didn’t want Grace to lose me either.. Now though, now I find out that was not the reason, and had everything to do with her parents and her family”. 

“What are you talking about buddy?”,  Watching Steve, knew he was a little confused at that, and he knew he would have to take it further and let him know what happened.. he had remained calm when Rachel told him, but his voice was betraying his feelings now, getting all breathy and shaky as he talked.  “I’m talking about my mother and father in law meddled in our marriage, telling Rachel that I must have been having an affair with my partner Grace because I wanted to name our daughter after her.. 

Nodding his head, Steve could sense he was not taking that new well, but he just responded, “Go on”, making sure not to say anything else, knowing Danny just needed to get this out, that he needed someone to lean on, and he was there for him. “Then they told her that it was further evidence that I was having an affair when I didn’t want to go to therapy.. Rachel all but believed them, and began distancing herself.. That is when we really began having issues and I tried Steve.. to get close to her  again, but that voice in my head said she was going to leave anyway so why bother trying”. 

His eyes were brimming with tears, something he hadn’t allowed Rachel to see the other night, but there was something comforting about his partner seeing him at his lowest, “Losing Rachel was the hardest thing I ever had to deal with bro, I was a mess, and then the day she told me she was dating Stan, I had only just started feeling a bit better and that brought it all back you know.. It was like I had been punched in the gut.. I can’t help but think, where would we be if her family hadn’t lied to her, but I also think if we were still in Jersey, I wouldn’t be here..”, his voice trailed off softly. 

Smiling softly, Steve appreciated the unspoken sentiment.. The man who initially hated Hawaii, who didn’t want to be here and wouldn’t have chosen this as a place to set down roots had really changed his tune in the last few years.. He might still whinge on the odd occasion but he knew that it was a more playful whinging at an island that he now calls home. “I know buddy, I love ya too”. Patting his shoulder, he watched Danny as the tension seemed to melt away once he had gotten that off his mind.. 

Before Danny could say anything else, Steve spoke again, “My advice bro.. If you still love her and feel like it’s time to give each other another chance, do it.. Don’t wait Danny.. We lost Joe, we nearly lost Gracie, just don’t.. don’t wait”. Nodding his head, Danny understood what he was saying, he just wasn’t sure how to go about this.. It was all new to him, dating not only an ex, but his ex wife, the woman he has children with.. Wouldn’t it be weird? Though he had a feeling he was right, and he owed it to himself, Rachel and the kids to see if they could make things work. 

“I hear you bro.. Just promise me one thing though Steve.. One little favor”, looking at him, he stopped for dramatic pause, then spoke, “practice what you preach, I know you know what I mean.. You... and Catherine.. I know at some point you must have been playing house there back at Joe’s ranch, you had that stupid grin on your face like you always do whenever she is around the whole time she was there and I know you loved the idea of you and Catherine being ‘married’ on your little undercover job”. 

Unbuckling his seat belt, he opened the door, and got out, smirking as he saw the look on the other man’s face, knowing he was almost too stubborn to do anything, but at the same time knowing that he did want to.. “Well, it is a little harder for me to practice what I preach when Catherine is still out working for the CIA, whereas you my friend.. You have every opportunity seeing as how Rachel has chosen to move back to Hawaii so that the four of you can be a family and stay together”, Steve took the keys out of the ignition, took his own seat belt off and opened the door, getting out and closing the car door, pressing the lock button before throwing Danny the car keys. 

Moving in step with Steve, they began to walk towards the palace, Danny couldn’t help himself, “Look, all I’m trying to say here is that maybe there is a reason why it didn’t work out with Lynn, and perhaps Catherine is the reason why you can’t seem to move on with anyone else.. I know I was very vocal about her coming in to your life only to hurt you again, but buddy..”, coming to a stop in front of him, “I know a good thing when I see it, and you and Catherine have a good thing.. So you can’t tell me to take a chance if you aren’t going to take a chance with your own love life capish?”

“Yeah, yeah, I hear you Danny”, Steve had started walking again and Danny caught up beside him, the two of them walking inside palace and up the stairs leading to their offices, “Do you hear me Steven because I think sometimes you deliberately pretend you can’t hear me”. Opening the glass door to the office, he sighed, “Yes, I do hear you Danny.. As a matter of fact, Catherine and I have been talking and she is going to take some time off soon to come and see Gracie.. She was worried sick about her when I told her about the accident”. 

There was no way he was going to say anything, but he could already see Steve’s face lighting up at the prospect of having Catherine back home in Hawaii for even a short period of time, His face turning into a more serious one, Danny sitting in his chair behind his desk and Steve sitting on a chair on the opposite side, “I was hoping you would get in touch with Catherine and let her know about Grace, She still misses Catherine.. She doesn't say anything, but seeing Catherine, then Kono, Chin and Sara leave, it was tough on her”. 

It had been hard on all of them to see Catherine leaving and then two of the original four five-o members leave, It was why Danny had been angry with Catherine because she didn’t just leave Steve, she left them all, and none of them apart from Steve even got a goodbye.. He had seen Catherine as a sister, even Rachel and Catherine got on well with each other, but it was heart breaking to have to tell Grace that Aunty Catherine was gone again after only being here a couple of days.. “Steve smiled softly, “ Of course, I update her all the time on what is going on in everyone’s lives.." 

Watching Steve click his fingers, he groaned a little, knowing already an idea was forming in his mind.. “How about when Catherine comes back to the island, we go on a double date.. You, Rachel, Catherine and I.. Adam can watch Charlie and ‘pretend’ to not be keeping an eye on Grace while she recovers.. We did it with Melissa and Lynn.. Why not do it with the loves of our lives? If things go well, who knows.. It might be a regular thing once Catherine does finally come home for good”. 

“Oy vey”, Shaking his head, Danny wasn’t sure if that was such a good idea, though he knew once Steve had his heart and mind set on something, there wasn’t a lot that could be done to change his mind.. Just as he was about to respond further, and try convince him out of it, Lou stuck his head into the office, “Something you two gotta see”. Danny nodded, Steve already out of his seat, but Danny stayed behind a moment to send a text to Rachel.. /How’s our girl doing?/ before he got up, put his phone in his back pocket and followed Steve and Lou out to the smart table to see what was the latest in the case. 

Thinking back on his conversation with Steve in the car and then again his office, not once did Steve ask him if he actually had an affair with his partner back in New Jersey, it made him smile knowing just how well Steve knew his partner to know without asking what the answer to that question was.. Maybe the double date idea wouldn’t be such a bad idea at all, that is if the two of them can put the past behind them and move on with their lives and just begin to enjoy being a family of four. 

  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really  hope you all enjoy this chapter, I had to put a little bit of Steve and Danny in there as well talking over things, being a soundboard for each other. This story, along with Winds of Change are pretty much going to run off each other, so there might be over lapping stories or things I have mentioned in one or the other.. Even though it’s primarily a Ranno story, it is a continuation after Steve and Danny got back from taking down Omar and it’s a continuation of how I see it going in the future. 


	5. Aia ka home ma kahi o ka naʻau  (Home is where the heart is)

 

That day had turned out to be a longer day then Danny had anticipated. It wasn’t till well after seven in the evening that he had managed to get home from the case. It had taken a while to apprehend the suspect and even longer to break him in the rendition room, however, he was now finally on his way home with the promise of dinner for his family. Smiling softly when he felt two arms around his legs when he walked in the door, he looked down to see his son’s beaming smile, “You missed me did you buddy?”, he hugged him as best he could with one arm while the other was holding dinner. 

Charlie nodded his head and hugged him tighter, the hug not losing meaning on Danny at all. He had always been happy with having a daughter, but he had to admit, it was an awesome feeling to be the father of such an amazing young woman and a cheeky and happy son. As much as he still hated that Rachel lied to him about the paternity which meant he missed out on so much of this kids life, he was grateful to know now. The rare condition Charlie had was what brought it all to the surface and whilst he hated to think of his son or any child for that matter going through that, he was grateful it brought him and his son together. 

“Alright buddy, now since you are here with me, you think you could help me out?”, His son smiled and nodded, “Yes Danno”, Rachel and Grace both smiling at the scene, Grace on the couch resting while Rachel was beginning to set the table for dinner. “Well, how about you take one of these bags and take it over to the counter for me, you think you are strong enough to do that?”, again, the little boy nodded and giggled, showing his muscles off to Danny, “Well of course you are, how could I doubt that”. He gave one of the lighter of the bags to Charlie whom carried it over to the counter and set it down, Rachel coming over to take the other bag off him, whispering softly, “We missed you today”. 

There was a moment when Danny thought about distancing himself again, however he remembered Steve’s words, ‘If you love her, don’t wait’ and instead, he decided to be bold and do something he hoped he wouldn’t regret. 

The two of them hadn’t shown a lot of romantic affection to the kids since the accident, but this time, he decided that now was the time. He still wanted to talk to her more about all of their issues, maybe even go to a therapist, like one she had been wanting to see when they were both still married to each other, but for now, he pulled her closer to him, wrapping his arms around her body and smiling softly with a renewed sense of confidence that was all due to Steve’s influence. “I missed you guys too” before giving her a chaste kiss on the lips, nothing over the top, just a soft slow greeting that had him wanting more. 

Aware that their children were in the room, Rachel smiled softly, blushing a little, feeling a little shy all of a sudden, “yeah?”, she questioned in a low voice, her eyebrows raised a little as though playfully challenging him, “yeah.. and if you play nicely, I might even show you how much later on if you catch my drift”, responding with a chuckle at the redness spreading over his ex wife’s cheeks. Winking to show him she understood exactly what he meant, she leaned in and kissed him once more, and then pulled away, noting the smile their interaction had put on both of their kids faces. “Come on Grace, let’s get you up so we can all eat together in the dinning room”. She walked over to Grace, helping her stand and whispering into her ear that her and Danny would sit her down tomorrow and talk to her about everything that was going on. 

Both of them would have questions about their relationship and Rachel knew it would be best to answer at least some of them the best they could to try to alleviate any stress or worrying. As a mother, she didn’t like seeing her kids hurt in anyway whether it be a physical trauma or an emotional one, and while they might not have all the answers right now, she also knew it was going to be hard to hide her and Danny’s new relationship status with each other for long, especially from their children. 

To be honest, she knew herself she also needed to talk to Danny again as well, they hadn’t talked much since the revelation about what her family had done to aid in tearing the married couple apart, so she needed to address it once more with Danny before she could answer any of their daughter’s questions. Charlie wouldn’t ask many questions, he had been happy to just go with the flow, which made it easy when she finally told Charlie that Danny was his father and that Stan was his step father like he was to Grace. He had taken to the change quite quickly and easily, so she wasn’t concerned about him, but Grace.. She knew she would have many questions. 

Eating as a family was a relatively new thing for the four of them. Both Rachel and Danny had eaten meals with both Grace and Charlie together but never the four of them, so this was new, but it was also familiar at the same time. There was laughter and smiles, playful teasing and lots of encouragement from Grace to Charlie to eat all his dinner so they could watch a movie together in her bedroom. The accident, though they hadn’t told Charlie a lot of the traumatic details, it had still been hard on him as he worshiped his sister and hating seeing her hurt or in pain.. 

Grace seemed to realize this as well so it was why she was making sure to spend as much time with Charlie as she could. The realization of how big an accident it was and how close her family had come to losing her had not been lost on the teenager at all. “Alright, I think that should be enough shouldn’t it Mommy.. He has eaten pretty much everything on his plate”, Danny could see the excitement in his son’s eyes at the thought of a movie night with Grace so he was giving his own okay to leave the table, hoping that Rachel would follow his lead. 

“I think Danno is right, you and Grace go and watch your movie, we’ll clean up in here”, She smiled softly at Danny, it was nice to be able to parent together for once and though either of them had the right to discipline and say when it was okay to be excused etc, it was still nice to know that Danny still respected her place as their mother as she knew she would do the same, respecting his place as their father. Once the kids had gone off to Grace’s room, Danny leaned over and kissed Rachel on the cheek before standing up to start clearing up the dishes, “We have raised two good kids there Rach”. 

Nodding her head in agreement, she smiled and began helping him with the dishes, “We sure have Danno”, using the nickname which was usually only reserved for the kids and Steve. “I was thinking”, she started at the same time Danny began with, “I think we should”, both stopped for a moment and chuckled, smiling as they cleaned the dishes, one washing and the other drying, “”You go first”, Danny began once more after the chuckling died down, “I was going to say, we should talk again”. Once the dishes had been washed, Danny wiped his hands on the hand towel and pulled her closer to him, “You’re not rethinking things are you Rach?”, his brow worrying a little, looking at her tying not to be too concerned. 

Shaking her head, she smiled, moving her own hands to around his neck, her fingers threading through his hair, “No, not at all Daniel, We just didn’t talk much after what I told you the other night.. I was worried it might have been a little too much for you, or you were doing your distancing thing again, you know using a case as an excuse to be away from me”. All those years of being insecure in her marriages, both of her marriages was leading her to think this way, this was how it started, with the end of the marriage to Danny.. He used to make up excuses to say he had to go on a case and she wouldn’t hear much from him even when he came home since he was only home to eat, shower and sleep. 

Danny opened his mouth to try to protest, but then he thought about it.. She was right, it wasn’t as much of an excuse as it was the truth, but the truth of it was, that when they started having problems, he did stay out on a case for much longer then he really needed to. Sighing softly in defeat, he nodded, “I guess I was a little.. We both have a lot of things we need to work on to make this work this time, I guess though I had a little advise from SuperSEAL and honestly Rach”, stopping for a breath, he gazed into her eyes, “While we may have both done things to upset or hurt each other, I’m all in.. I’m putting my whole heart into this with you”. 

_‘Putting my whole heart into this with you’._

Those words were like on repeat in Rachel’s head and she smiled brightly upon hearing them coming from Danny’s lips. Truth be told, she never thought they would get here again.. She was sure that everything she had done in the past was too much, but he was willing to forgive and maybe not forget, but move on.. It felt incredible to her that this opportunity was even here, and same with how she knew Danny felt about Charlie’s health issues, she wouldn’t have wanted Grace or any of them to go through that again, it did give them their opening. Two of the most poignant moments in their lives came from health issues with their children that finally got them to this point in their lives. 

If not for Charlie’s medical issues, Rachel can’t answer if she would have ever had the strength to tell Daniel, Stan, Charlie and Grace the truth, and if not for that moment when she finally did tell him at the park, then she might have still be married to Stan pretending to make it work and not here in Danny’s arms where she truly felt she belonged. “Thank you Danny”, her eyes were filled with tears and she fought to keep them from falling down her face, “I never thought we would ever get here.. Thank you for giving us a chance.. I’m all in this as well Daniel.. Whatever comes next, we can deal with it together and as a family”. 

Smiling softly as he held her closer, “Thank you for giving me the two most amazing kids in the world, for giving me your heart.. and thank you for running into my police car all those years ago, now.. I believe I made you a promise... to show you just how much I missed you”. Picking her up into his arms, he switched off the kitchen light and began moving to the bedroom, “What about the rest of the dishes, I know for a fact you hate leaving them till the next morning”. Grinning from ear to ear, he chuckled, “Well, my job was done, it was you who was drying who needed to catch up.. If you prefer, I can leave you out here to finish and have a little fun on my own”. 

Catching his lips with her own, she smiled happily, her heart racing at the thought of her being intimate with Danny again.. He after all had been the only man the fully satisfy her in a way that no one else ever could, “I can’t have you having fun all to yourself while I’m in the kitchen now can I?”. Whispering in his ear, “Show me how much you missed me Detective Williams or I might need to use those handcuffs on you now”. Smiling wider, he nodded, “Yes Ma’am”, winking before he carried her into the bedroom and closing the door. 

Hours later, both of them fully sated, Danny fast asleep after having a long day on a case, Rachel lay next to him, her head on his shoulder, feeling exhausted after the last couple of weeks, but still unable to sleep, tracing her fingers along Danny’s chest, listening to his heart beating calmly, she knew that this was where she was meant to be. She had a lot to think about and a lot to talk over with Danny and the kids about the future. The house she was living in was still her and Stan’s place when they were married, Stan having given it to her in the divorce settlement, but she knew that Danny wouldn’t want to live there.. 

Truth be told, she really adored Danny’s modest house.. It was big enough for the four of them, Grace and Charlie each had their own bedrooms, and it just felt right to her.. It felt home.. As much as her mother was someone who craved possessions, it was never something Rachel inherited.. Sure she had loved the huge gated home she had lived in with Stan, but she wasn’t one for material possessions herself.. As long as she had her family, it was all she needed or could ever want.. 

 

This was home.... 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry it has taken me nearly a month to update this story. My job requires me to change roster every month and I have changed shifts onto a 7pm finish and I have another two weeks left on that shift. It doesn’t give me a whole lot of time to write during the weekday and I had my niece and nephew to take care of last weekend while my sister and brother in law attended an engagement party. 
> 
> I am hoping to also update the Missing Piece and also Winds of Change over this weekend as well, so please look for those updates at some stage during the next couple of days. 
> 
> I am going to use the next two chapters for Rachel and Danny to have a sit down and talk with each of the kids. I’ll have Steve perhaps take Charlie out for a while as they talk to Grace and then maybe as well, Grace can spend some time recuperating in her room as they talk to Charlie in his room. I also would like to have a chapter where Stan comes around and apologizes for giving Grace the car without including Danny and they tell him they are together. 
> 
> I know as well that there is an upcoming episode with Amanda Savage whom is Rachel’s mother, so once I see that episode and see how she acts and is around both Steve and Danny, I might also write a chapter based around her finding out that her daughter and ex son in law are back together as well. 

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote a story called Danno’s little girl. I got some good feedback about continuing the story for Danny and Rachel, however as that story was just about that one moment at the hospital and focusing on mainly Danny, I decided to create a brand new story for the Ranno story to take place. It can be read as a companion though as it does follow on after Danno’s little girl, however you don’t have to read Danno’s little girl to understand this one. 


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